ESOP: Enhancing B&D’s Service at Every Level

When the Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) was rolled out in 2015, it was a conscious decision to invest in the future – not only for the company, but for our customers as well.

Continuing Our Legacy of Excellence

When John D. Nations founded B&D Industrial (then called Bearings and Drives) more than 70 years ago, he was determined to provide great service to customers and create challenging, meaningful employment opportunities for his employees.

From a young age, John had learned the importance of hard work and high standards in his father’s sawmill in Senoia, GA. He used that experience to set the benchmark for outstanding customer service in his own company.

Our legacy of excellence and the culture that has sustained it since 1947 is due, at least in part, to B&D’s proud tradition as an independent, family-owned company. Deciding to put that future and leadership directly in the hands of the people who have helped build it seemed a natural next step in our evolution.

The Golden Rule of Service

The Golden Rule of “do unto others as you would have them do unto you” infuses the culture at B&D. It’s reflected in how we interact and support each other as co-workers, and especially applies to customer service.

The B&D motto was, and remains “be easy to do business with”.

For B&D, that means anticipating a customer’s needs, always going the extra mile and consistently providing superior solutions and service no matter how big or small the need may be. Finding great employees who understand and adhere to those core values is an area where B&D Industrial has excelled since 1947.

A Profitable Incentive for Employees

Giving employees equity stake in the company has motivated each of us to exceed the expectations of not only our customers, but also each other.

B&D has always actively recruited the best engineers, technicians, customer service reps and salespeople to serve our customer base of manufacturers, OEMs and utilities.

An enviable employee benefits package, competitive salaries, friendly work environment and an open-door policy on employee ideas has helped us secure the finest people in their respective fields. Introducing the ESOP to B&D has only served to raise the bar on individual and team performance, and our deeply ingrained motivation to always exceed expectations.

And the benefits of the ESOP go beyond the immediate. The plan helps ensure that tenured employees benefit from their dedication to B&D Industrial at retirement – and there’s no pinch in an employee’s paycheck before then. Nor are they taxed on their allocations until they retire. When the employee is fully vested in 6 years, he or she sells back their stock to B&D either upon retirement or when leaving the company.

Besides building a significant nest egg, pride-in-ownership has also part of the ESOP package for B&D and its people. The privileges of being an “employee-owner” includes sharing in the company’s success at the end of the day, as well as having a voice in how B&D evolves as a profitable enterprise.

Customer Service Kick-Starter

All of which has served to directly benefit the folks who keep our doors open. Every time the phone rings, a customer site visit is made, or a customer walks in the door of one of our branch locations, they are likely speaking to a company owner, no matter who they encounter.

And it’s a benefit that employees must continue working to earn and keep. From the CEO to entry-level positions, our investment in the company is universal. Employee ownership translates into not only sharing in B&D’s profits, but also in the responsibilities of steering the company in the right direction to spur growth and maintain our solid reputation as leaders in service, solutions and expertise.